Topic: Babylon 5 Wars Conversion
Since the previous Babylon 5 Wars conversions don't seem to be available on the forums any more I thought I would share mine.
While B5W had very detailed ships this was also its downfall (I don't want to be keeping track of how many damage points each of my laser cannons has left and what different critical hits they have taken), and the subsequent Fleet Action rules didn't really grab my interest.
Ships with the Hyperdrive trait are capable of opening their own jump point to enter hyperspace. Smaller ships don't normally have this capability and either have to rely on fixed jump gates or use the jump point created by a larger ship. I haven't really come up with any particular rules for this but I would suggest that if they can end their turn in the same hex, and facing in the same direction, as the ship that is using the Hyperdrive then they can also enter Hyperspace.
The Earth Alliance
The EA ships are rather blocky, slow, and low-tech (but not enough to warrant a tech level penalty) using a mix of plasma cannons, particle beams, laser cannons, and pulse cannons, plus a few railguns and missile launchers.
Their claim to fame, as it were, is the interceptor array that can shoot down incoming fire or target fighters. I have represented this as Anti-Fighter Batteries, Countermeasures, and Point Defense.
The ships below are the basic ships from the era of the TV show. Up to this point the EA has fought two major wars. In the Dilgar War they came off the bench late on to become the saviours of the League of Non-Aligned Worlds who were being massacred by the genocidal Dilgar. Shortly after that war first contact with the Minbari went very badly wrong (“we handled the Dilgar, we can handle a few stray ships”) resulting in the EA being almost totally destroyed and the Minbari only stopping once in Earth orbit.
Fighters
Tiger – an older fighter that was still in use at the start of the Dilgar War but had mainly been replaced by the Nova.
(38) Tiger Starfury, 6/9/0, (Fighter/5+/Non-Piercing)
Nova – the main fighter during the Dilgar War.
(44) Nova Starfury, 6/10/1, (Fighter/5+/Non-Piercing)
Aurora – introduced during the Dilgar War this became the main service fighter of the EA.
(46) Aurora Starfury, 6/11/1, (Fighter/5+/Non-Piercing)
Badger – a two-man “bomber” version of the Aurora, this has a rear-facing gunner and carries a small missile load.
(56) Badger Starfury, 6/10/1, (Fighter/4+/Non-Piercing) (Striker/5+)
Thunderbolt – the latest fighter and the first for a while to be able to enter a planetary atmosphere. Due to the differences in shape most older ships can't carry the Thunderbolt.
(60) Thunderbolt Starfury, 6/12/1, (Fighter/5+)
Lamprey Breaching Pod – not normally carried, these are specialist small craft that can attach themselves the hull of a ship or space station, burn their way through the hull and release their cargo of marines inside.
(5) Lamprey, 1/8/1, (Boarding Pod/5+)
Hades Shuttle – designed for planetary assaults, this shuttle could land in enemy shuttle bays if needed.
(11) Hades, 1/8/1, (Breacher/6+)
Ships
The EA has a number of basic hulls that they have then modified or converted over the years as different weapons have become available and different needs have cropped up. Therefore each ship has a hull type and a Greek letter designation to ship which version of that hull it is.
Artemis Beta Heavy Frigate
A tough small ship armed with railguns. It is designed to close with enemy capital ships and pound them into scrap, while relying on its tough hull to protect it. While it could be used as a general patrol ship, it would need regular resupply.
Type: ARTEMIS-class EARTH ALLIANCE HEAVY FRIGATE (126)
Hull: 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Engines: [TL0] 4 4 4 3 3 2 2 1 1
Shields: [TL0] 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Weapons: [TL0] 1:[XY] 2:[X] 3:[X] 4:[X] 5:[Y] 6:[Y]
Battery X: Railgun, 3/6/9, 1/5+/1/2, Extra Hull Damage; Starship Exclusive
[AC] [AC] [BD] [BD] [CE] [DF]
Battery Y: Standard Particle Beam, 2/4/6, 1/4+/1/1, Anti-Fighter
[ACE] [ACE] [BDF] [BDF]
Special: [TL0] Anti-Fighter Batteries (1); Countermeasures; Marines (3); Point Defense
Avenger Gamma Heavy Carrier
Designed with multiple small hangers this ship can quickly get its fighters into action, this ship has minimal weaponry.
Type: AVENGER-class EARTH ALLIANCE HEAVY CARRIER (567)
Hull: 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Engines: [TL0] 3 3 3 3 2 2 2 2 1 1 1
Shields: [TL0] 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Weapons: [TL0] 1:[X] 2:[X] 3:[Y] 4:[Y] 5:[Y] 6:[Y]
Battery X: Medium Plasma Cannon, 2/4/6, 1/5+/1/1, Range-Based DMG; Starship Exclusive
[AB] [AC] [BD]
Battery Y: Light Pulse Cannon, 1/2/3, 1/4+/1/1, Anti-Fighter; Increased Hits; Non-Piercing -1
[AC] [BD] [ACE] [BDF] [CE] [DF]
Special: [TL0] Anti-Fighter Batteries (3); Carrier (368); Countermeasures; Hyperdrive; Launch Tubes; Marines (5); Point Defense
Fighters: [TL0]
8xAurora Starfury, 6/11/1, (Fighter/5+/Non-Piercing)
Explorer Alpha Survey Ship
A massive ship which is designed to undertake long duration exploration missions and repair and build jumpgates.
Type: EXPLORER-class EARTH ALLIANCE SURVEY SHIP (422)
Hull: 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Engines: [TL0] 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
Shields: [TL0] 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Weapons: [TL0] 1:[X] 2:[Y] 3:[Y] 4:[Y] 5:[] 6:[]
Battery X: Heavy Pulse Cannon, 3/6/9, 1/4+/1/1, Increased Hits; Starship Exclusive
[A] [B]
Battery Y: Standard Particle Beam, 2/4/6, 1/4+/1/1, Anti-Fighter
[ACE] [ACE] [ACE] [ACE] [BDF] [BDF] [BDF] [BDF]
Special: [TL0] Anti-Fighter Batteries (4); Cargo (100); Carrier (184); Countermeasures; Fire Control; Hyperdrive; Marines (7); Point Defense
Fighters: [TL0]
4xAurora Starfury, 6/11/1, (Fighter/5+/Non-Piercing)
Hermes Beta Transport
A small priority transport and one of the smallest EA ships to carry its own jump drive.
Type: HERMES-class EARTH ALLIANCE PRIORITY TRANSPORT (163)
Hull: 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Engines: [TL0] 5 5 4 4 3 2 2 1
Shields: [TL0] 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Weapons: [TL0] 1:[X] 2:[X] 3:[Y] 4:[Y] 5:[Y] 6:[]
Battery X: Class-S Missile Rack, 3/6/9, 1/4+/1/1, Anti-Fighter; No Range Mods
[ABCDEF] [ABCDEF]
Battery Y: Standard Particle Beam, 2/4/6, 1/4+/1/1, Anti-Fighter
[AC] [BD] [ACE] [BDF]
Special: [TL0] Anti-Fighter Batteries (1); Cargo (30); Carrier (46); Countermeasures; Hyperdrive; Marines (3); Point Defense
Fighters: [TL0]
1xAurora Starfury, 6/11/1, (Fighter/5+/Non-Piercing)
Hyperion Theta Heavy Cruiser
The main “ship of the line” in both wars it has undergone a number of upgrades to get to this version.
Type: HYPERION-class EARTH ALLIANCE HEAVY CRUISER (243)
Hull: 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Engines: [TL0] 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 1 1 1 1 1 1
Shields: [TL0] 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Weapons: [TL0] 1:[WZ] 2:[W] 3:[X] 4:[X] 5:[Y] 6:[Z]
Battery W: Heavy Laser Cannon, 4/8/12, 1/5+/2/2, Extra Hull Damage; Starship Exclusive
[A] [B] [E] [F]
Battery X: Medium Pulse Cannon, 2/4/6, 1/4+/1/1, Anti-Fighter; Increased Hits; Non-Piercing -1
[ABCD] [ACE] [BDF]
Battery Y: Medium Plasma Cannon, 2/4/6, 1/5+/1/1, Range-Based DMG; Starship Exclusive
[ABCD] [ABCD]
Battery Z: Standard Particle Beam, 2/4/6, 1/4+/1/1, Anti-Fighter
[ABCDEF] [ABCDEF] [ABCDEF]
Special: [TL0] Anti-Fighter Batteries (2); Carrier (46); Countermeasures; Hyperdrive; Marines (5); Point Defense
Fighters: [TL0]
1xAurora Starfury, 6/11/1, (Fighter/5+/Non-Piercing)
Nova Beta Dreadnought
A massively over-gunned ship with a large central hanger bay. Armed entirely with the laser-pulse array which combines both a medium laser cannon and a medium pulse cannon into a single mount, it is rather cramped and prone to mechanical failures. I am aware that dual mode weapons should have the same range, but this is actually two different weapons in the same mount – although only one can be fired at a time due to the single power supply.
Type: NOVA-class EARTH ALLIANCE DREADNOUGHT (460)
Hull: 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Engines: [TL0] 3 3 3 3 3 2 2 2 2 2 1 1 1 1 1
Shields: [TL0] 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Weapons: [TL0] 1:[2X] 2:[2X] 3:[X] 4:[X] 5:[X] 6:[X]
Battery X: Mode1: Medium Laser Cannon, 3/6/9, 1/5+/1/2, Extra Hull Damage; Starship Exclusive
Mode2: Medium Pulse Cannon, 2/4/6, 1/4+/1/1, Anti-Fighter; Increased Hits; Non-Piercing -1
[A] [A] [B] [B] [AC] [AC] [AC] [AC] [AC] [BD] [BD] [BD] [BD] [BD] [CE] [CE] [DF] [DF]
Special: [TL0] Anti-Fighter Batteries (2); Carrier (184); Countermeasures; Hyperdrive; Marines (5); Point Defense
Fighters: [TL0]
4xAurora Starfury, 6/11/1, (Fighter/5+/Non-Piercing)
Olympus Delta Corvette
A general purpose small warship with a mix of weaponry. Unlike most ships, the bridge is not protected within the centre of the ship – instead it is on a pole sticking out the side of the ship.
Type: OLYPMUS-class EARTH ALLIANCE CORVETTE (135)
Hull: 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Engines: [TL0] 4 4 4 3 3 2 2 1 1
Shields: [TL0] 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Weapons: [TL0] 1:[XZ] 2:[X] 3:[Y] 4:[Y] 5:[Y] 6:[Z]
Battery X: Railgun, 3/6/9, 1/5+/1/2, Extra Hull Damage; Starship Exclusive
[ABCDEF] [ABCDEF]
Battery Y: Medium Pulse Cannon, 2/4/6, 1/4+/1/1, Anti-Fighter; Increased Hits; Non-Piercing -1
[AC] [AC] [BD] [BD]
Battery Z: Class-S Missile Rack, 3/6/9, 1/4+/1/1, Anti-Fighter; No Range Mods
[AC] [BD]
Special: [TL0] Anti-Fighter Batteries (1); Countermeasures; Marines (3); Point Defense
Omega Alpha Destroyer
A new design developed after the Minbari War and the first Earth ship to have artificial gravity by way of a central spun section. It is also the first to carry the Thunderbolt fighter. As this ship is bigger than the Nova it would appear that the EA uses “destroyer” to mean “star destroyer”.
Type: OMEGA-class EARTH ALLIANCE DESTROYER (476)
Hull: 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Engines: [TL0] 3 3 3 3 3 2 2 2 2 2 1 1 1 1 1
Shields: [TL0] 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Weapons: [TL0] 1:[XZ] 2:[XZ] 3:[Y] 4:[Z] 5:[Z] 6:[Z]
Battery X: Heavy Laser Cannon, 4/8/12, 1/5+/2/2, Extra Hull Damage; Starship Exclusive
[A] [B] [E] [F]
Battery Y: Heavy Pulse Cannon, 3/6/9, 1/4+/1/1, Increased Hits; Starship Exclusive
[A] [B]
Battery Z: Standard Particle Beam, 2/4/6, 1/4+/1/1, Anti-Fighter
[ACE] [ACE] [ACE] [ACE] [ACE] [ACE] [BDF] [BDF] [BDF] [BDF] [BDF] [BDF]
Special: [TL0] Anti-Fighter Batteries (3); Carrier (240); Countermeasures; Hyperdrive; Marines (5); Point Defense
Fighters: [TL0]
4xThunderbolt Starfury, 6/12/1, (Fighter/5+)
Tethys Kappa Police Cutter
A general purpose patrol and security ship.
Type: TETHYS-class EARTH ALLIANCE POLICE CUTTER (72)
Hull: 5 4 3 2 1
Engines: [TL0] 4 4 3 2 1
Shields: [TL0] 0 0 0 0 0
Weapons: [TL0] 1:[XY] 2:[XY] 3:[X] 4:[Y] 5:[Y] 6:[Y]
Battery X: Medium Pulse Cannon, 2/4/6, 1/4+/1/1, Anti-Fighter; Increased Hits; Non-Piercing -1
[AC] [BD]
Battery Y: Light Pulse Cannon, 1/2/3, 1/4+/1/1, Anti-Fighter; Increased Hits; Non-Piercing -1
[GHI] [GHI] [ACE] [BDF]
Special: [TL0] Anti-Fighter Batteries (1); Countermeasures; Marines (1); Point Defense
Edited to add version designations</r>